CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The toughest task Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera was supposed to have to deal with this week was figuring out how to break the Seahawks’ code in Seattle. Then the fire alarm started going off.

Literally.

Rivera and his wife Stephanie were woken by an unmistakable smell around 3:30 a.m. Monday morning. Their south Charlotte home was on fire.

“We both kind of said at the same time, ‘I think I smell smoke,'” Rivera recalled Monday afternoon. “She turned the lights on, and the house was filled with smoke.”

As flames started spreading through the walls and floors of the three-story house, the Riveras, Ron’s two brothers and their wives rushed outside with the two family dogs. Fifty-six responders from the Charlotte Fire Department helped salvage the Riveras’ wedding album and other personal mementos, but the master bedroom, family room and living room were all “pretty close” to destroyed. Rivera estimated it would take six to eight months before the house is livable again.

In the short term, the Riveras plan to stay with friends. And Carolina’s coach will start getting ready for Seattle.

“Most of the stress will be at home,” Rivera said. “This is easy, this really is. This will be a great way for me to take my mind off it just for a little bit.”

After his players woke up to the news, Rivera’s typical Monday plan was thrown out of whack. He missed morning meetings before arriving at Bank of America Stadium in the afternoon. With a West Coast trip and a short week ahead, the Panthers were already facing a strange schedule this week. But even though he wasn’t sure they’d be facing the Seahawks until Sunday night, Rivera had his coaching staff start preparing for the possible matchup earlier in the day.

“The idea was to stay ahead. The coaches have. They’ve informed me where they are. The guy that is going to have to do any catching up is going to be me,” Rivera said.

According to the Charlotte Fire Investigative Task Force, the blaze started in a gas fireplace next to the Riveras’ bedroom. Rivera and his brothers had the fireplace on while they watched Sunday’s NFL action.

“It somehow just smoldered and kicked into high gear later on,” Rivera said.

The fire at the head coach’s house was the latest in the line of a dramatic stretch of storylines that have surrounded the Panthers this year. From Steve Smith’s release to Greg Hardy’s arrest to Cam Newton’s injuries and car accident, it has been arguably the most dramatic season in Carolina’s 20-year history.

And that doesn’t take into account what has happened on the field, where the Panthers now have a chance to upset the Seahawks in a stadium where Seattle has gone 26-2 over the past three seasons.

“This opportunity to work, opportunity to continue to work, is very reassuring. This could have been worse, like Cam’s situation could have been worse, but it wasn’t,” Rivera said.

“You can’t write this. You can’t make this stuff up. But at the end of the day, you learn how to cope with these things, and if you can keep your focus, you’ve got an opportunity, you’ve got a chance.”

Carolina’s crazy year began in March when it released Smith. A week later, Newton underwent ankle surgery. In May, Hardy was arrested on domestic violence charges.

Newton then broke his ribs during a preseason game, and in Week 3, Hardy’s season was effectively ended when he went on the commissioners’ exempt list.

After a winless streak that lasted two months, the Panthers finally looked back on track after blowing out the Saints in early December. Two days later, Newton broke two bones in his lower back after his truck flipped during a wreck two blocks from Bank of America Stadium.

Despite it all, the Panthers finished the regular season with four straight victories to win the lowly NFC South. They then beat the Cardinals on Saturday for their first playoff win in nine seasons.

Two days later, a team that has seen more than its fair share of drama was dealing with some more.

“Every year has its own story. Every year has its own series of events that’s hard to predict. But cars accidents with your starting quarterback and your head coach’s house catching fire, those are things that I don’t think anyone ever anticipates being a part of your story,” tight end Greg Olsen said.

“Coach has set a good example of how to handle things personally and professionally, and try to balance that. This will just be another example, except now he’s the one balancing it. He kind of set that leadership from the beginning when he got here, of how to handle distractions both in tough times off the field and tough times on the field. So I think if anybody’s prepared for it, it’ll be him.”

REPORT CARD VS. CARDINALS:

PASSING OFFENSE: B — For the second straight week, QB Cam Newton did not have to do much thanks to a dominating effort by the Panthers’ defense. Newton connected on 18 of his 32 passes for two touchdowns, but he had several misfires, especially in the first half. His only interception came when intended WR Jerricho Cotchery was not looking after he was held up in traffic. The Panthers’ offensive line had another solid week, allowing just one sack.

RUSHING OFFENSE: A-minus — RB Jonathan Stewart broke 100 yards for the third time in five games, totaling 123 yards on 24 carries. He also scored on a 13-yard run. Newton and RBs DeAngelo Williams and Mike Tolbert also chipped in to pile up 188 rushing yards.

PASS DEFENSE: A — The Panthers gave up 78 total yards, breaking the NFL record set by the 1956 Giants for fewest yards allowed in a playoff game. Carolina caught a break facing Arizona’s Ryan Lindley. The third-string quarterback threw for only 51 yards, the fewest in a playoff game since the Patriots held the Ravens to 34 in 2010.

RUSH DEFENSE: A — The Cardinals came in with the 31st-ranked run game, and they found very little room to roam against the Panthers. Carolina gave up just 27 rushing yards, the third-fewest in franchise history.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C-plus — Returner Brenton Bersin made a horrible decision that led to a muffed punt, setting up Arizona’s first touchdown, and kicker Graham Gano missed his seventh field goal of the year. But Brad Nortman placed three of his four punts inside the 20, and the Panthers forced Arizona’s Ted Ginn to fumble inside the 5-yard line on a kickoff return.

COACHING: B-plus — Cardinals coach Bruce Arians did his best to make his team believe it could win despite all of its injuries, but Panthers coach Ron Rivera had the better team. A one-point halftime deficit turned into a comfortable 11-point win, Carolina’s first playoff victory in nine seasons. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula called a few too many passes in the second half, but defensive coordinator Sean McDermott called what ended up as an historic game on the stat sheet.